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Topic: Spotted Dove RUNAWAY (Read 1516 times)

Pudge, my 2.5 yr old, female spotted dove is my rescue daughter. At 4 days old, a gang of crows killed and ate her parents and nestmate, and she fell into our picnic, with closed eyes, no feathers and a HUGE appetite. She's never been in a cage, but wears a 6 foot lead on her leg. She's also never flown off, but 2 weeks ago she was with her dad ( split-custody situation, a recent development) in Richmond. He was walking her across a bridge, at 2 am, and had her lead on but unsecured at his end. She flew off into the dark, apparently for no reason. I rushed from my new home in Surrey to his in Richmond, where we all used to live together, and couldn't find her. The next day, at 11am, she was found waiting at our regular busstop, unharmed but missing her lead. No, I haven't forgiven my ex for being so irresponsible, and yes, I have taken full custody as a result, but my question is this: doves being so closely related to pigeons, is there anything I can do to teach her to return to my home (her home now, too) in the event she takes off again, a la Homing Pigeon? So many things could have happened to my beloved Pudgie, and I'll do ANYTHING to reduce the risks to her life and health if anything happens.